Roberta Beach Jacobson is an American author/poet/editor who is drawn to the magic of words – flash fiction, poetry, song lyrics, puzzles, and stand-up comedy. Her latest book is Demitasse Fiction: One-Minute Reads for Busy People (Alien Buddha Press, 2023). She lives in Indianola, Iowa, with her husband and three cats.
I searched, for many years, for enlightenment. I questioned a lot and searched for reasons for why people think the way they do and react the way they do. The absurdity of life has always fascinated me and disturbed me. Philosophy has always been an interest. Even in this book of funny illustrations, there is a lot of philosophy behind the scenes! Art helps me create the settings and allows me to make fun of myself and our crazy world.
By day, I’m a former scientist with a background in materials chemistry, now working in the saner (but no less complex) world of intellectual property. Both sides of me live in Birmingham—a city full of grit, heart, bin bags, and endless inspiration for the end of the world. We have two cats, one kid and one husband that we have to share.
Rachel has enjoyed writing all kinds of funny little stories since she was the young age of eleven. Also a nerd, she likes Star Wars and anything involving vampires. Some of her favorite TV shows are The Vampire Diaries, Brooklyn 99, and Supernatural. Her inspiration for The Dark Prince of Lazera comes from a lifelong interest in magic, folklore, and the paranormal.
Rachanee Lumayno is an actress, voiceover artist, screenwriter, avid gamer, and amateur dodgeball player. She grew up in Michigan, where she spent way too much of her free time reading fantasy novels. So when she decided to try her hand at writing a book, it made sense that it would be in her favorite genre. The Kingdom Legacy series marks her debut as an author. She is also a staff writer for two comics and an upcoming video game.
I write how I feel, and when I started writing this book, I was just so upset and angry at quite a lot of recent cases of animal cruelty that had appeared in the news. This novel was my way of venting my anger and creating the ultimate form of punishment for people who think it’s okay to be cruel to animals as, in my opinion, there is no justice for the animals who fall victim to these cruel people. I wanted to create a system that would keep them safe, all of them, and protect them from the darker side of humanity.
Oluwabunmi Ajao holds a bachelor’s degree in German and French Studies from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and a master’s degree in Intercultural German Studies from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, as a DAAD Scholar.
Olivier is a writer and cosmopolitan thinker working in San Francisco. She is committed to humanistic perspectives and the importance and power of the narratives we share. Olivier won the 2023 Hicks Prize in Fiction, and has been featured in The Lawrentian newspaper.
Nicki’s debut novel, Ellis River, won the Independent Book Publishers Association’s Bill Fisher Award for Best First Book – Fiction. The next year, it won IBPA’s award for Best Audiobook – Fiction. The novel was also a finalist for the Eric Hoffer First Horizons Award, received an Honorable Mention for the Eric Hoffer Grand Prize, and was a semi-finalist for the Publishers Weekly Booklife Prize.
As an author, Michelle is passionate about creating stories that help children (and adults) build strong social-emotional skills in a fun, approachable way. Through her books, she tackles everyday challenges like learning patience, calming a busy mind at bedtime, and using art to manage emotions like anger.
Hampton County native Michael M. DeWitt Jr. is a multiple-award-winning journalist, longtime editor of the 144-year-old The Hampton County Guardian, author of four books, including Wicked Hampton County and Fall of the House of Murdaugh, and host of the Wicked South Podcast.
Mesalie Feleke is a doctor, biologist, peer reviewer, and postdoctoral cancer researcher based in Perth. She has a passion for literature, art, and storytelling, and draws on her diverse experiences to craft thought-provoking narratives that explore change, resilience, and human complexity.
Mark Bowsher has been a freelance writer and filmmaker since 2013. He’s written four award-winning short films and had short stories published by Fish Publishing and Breakthrough Books. He’s directed promo films for Jaguar Land Rover, VSO, and Unbound. He’s also written and directed several chart-topping documentaries for Dan Snow’s History Hit.
Malcolm Farrell-Mitchell is an Australian-born migrant to Ireland. He is a fan of absurdism, escapism, and humour. Whilst his head is based in Dublin working in the world of travel and events, his heart is in the clouds with fantasy, elves, and magic. He has loved writing all his life, and never had an interest in doing anything with it until his mother (also see ‘Editor’) encouraged him to submit a story to a writing competition. He has been miserably trying to write a book for almost five years, and this is the closest he has gotten to something he likes. But more importantly, it brings him immense joy. He’s now getting freaked out by writing in third person for so long.
Lynn Shattuck has been publishing essays on the topic of sibling loss for more than a decade. She was a paid columnist at Elephant Journal for ten years; several of her essays on the topic of grief and sibling loss have gone viral. Her writing has also appeared on The Huffington Post, Human Parts, Vice, The Fix, and Al Jazeera.
Leonora Ross is an artist and novelist from Western Canada. When she’s not writing novels, she enjoys writing whimsical poetry and prose and is an avid mountain hiker and amateur photographer. Her writing and photography regularly appear in literary journals.
Kimberly Nixon writes family stories featuring strong, determined—and sometimes wild—characters. She wrestles these personalities, which are based on real people, into the main characters of her works of fiction. She is a member of the Women’s Fiction Writing Association and the Writers’ League of Texas. Nixon lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Paul, and commits to living a great story of her own.
Kerry Brackett is a renowned writer whose work deeply explores cultural narratives and personal introspection. Originating from Birmingham, AL, his writing is influenced by the city’s rich history and culture. He is the author of acclaimed novels like Shadows at Sundown, The Spirit of Kwanzaa: A Journey, Echoes of the Past, and Light on the Horizon.
Katie Lang-Slattery began her writing career in the youth periodical market. She published her first adult book in 2015, at the age of 72. This historical novel, Immigrant Soldier, The Story of a Ritchie Boy, has garnered awards and fans. Her children’s chapter book series, Tagalong Caitlin, Caitlin’s Buddy, and Caitlin’s Party, are about the camp experiences of a little girl with big ideas and determination. Katie’s memoir, Wherever the Road Leads, recounts two years living in a VW van in the 1970s, driving across four continents. She is currently completing her second novel, Ashes and Ruins, a mother/daughter story that takes place in Nazi Germany and Blitz-torn London.
J.L. is the award-winning writer of the spooky middle grade series The Berge Sisters. When he was a kid, he used to spend recess in the woods surrounding his rural elementary school and read until the bell rang. It’s his dream to create stories that inspire kids the same way he was so long ago.